Improved wheel for vehicles



' 3 Sheets-'Sheet l. I. F. lVIUNSQ-l.l WHEEL PoR VVEEIGILBS. No. 102,853-j7zggf Patented May 1Q, 1870.

3 Sheets-.Sheet 2.

I. F. MUNSON. WHEEL EoE VEHICLES.

N0. 102,853. faz-E41 Patented May 10, 1870.

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n 3'Sheets-i-S`heetl3.. I= P. MUNSON. WHEEL EOE VEHICLES. No. 102,853. Patented'MEy 10. .1870.

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Lette/rs Patent No. 102,853, dated May 10, 1870.

vIMPROVBD WHEEL FOR VEHICLES.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and-making part; o! the same To all whom 'it ana-y concern:

Beit known that I, IRA M-UNsoN, of Washington city, District of Columbia, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Wheels for Carriages and other Vehicles, and I do hereby declare that' the following 1s a description of the same, with the accompanymg drawings, in which Figure lis a side view,l and Figure 2, an edge'view ofmy wheel.

Figure. 3 is a sectional view of a portion of the wheel.

' Figure 4 is a front view, showing part ot' the wheel 1lsrroken away, and parts of it i n elevation and in secion.

Figure 5 is a sectional view of a part of thev wheel, slightly modified by applying. retaining and jam-nuts to the spokes.

Figure 6 is a section ofthe portion ot' wheel shown in iig. 5.

Figure 7 is also a section of the saine portion.

Figure 8 is a cross-section of the wheel shown intig. 4, plate2, in the line :c zt.

.Figure 9 is an elevation ot'- one of the spokes.

Figures 10'and 11, are views showingr the innerA matching faces of the hub-plates.

Figure 12 is a` sectional view, showing a slight modification ot' the hub, by separating the pairs'of matching-plates with a short tube. This view illust-rates the manner in which thc hub is confined to the axle.

The same letters of reference iii the several figures indicate corresponding parts.

The object sought by my invention is to overcome the serious objection to all'spoked wheels, whether the same are composed partly ot' iron and wood or of wood entirely, riz., unequal shrinkage in the p arts, and,

while l have aimed to attain nearly a uniform cxpansion and contraction of the different parts, `I have also obviated a serious objection to all spokcd wheels which are composed wholly ofiron, viz., weakness at the points of junction between the` spokes and the telloes or rim, and great weight in the wheel; and, further, in aiming to overcome the last-named defect-s iniron wheels, I have secured not only the object desired, viz., lightness and great strength, but also asntlicient degree of flexibility, and also facility for tightening up the spokes, rim, and hub of the wheel; and, withal, I have produced a wheel which may be manufactured in a cheap and expeditious manner, and of which, parts, for the repair thereof, may be kept on sale by the trade, so that, at very slight cost and trouble, any part of the wheel, which in time sliall`1liavc become impaired, may

be renewed.

The nature of my invention consists- First, in a new felloe or rim.

Sixth, in a sheathing for the inner circumtcrencc of the rim.

Seventh, in retaining-nuts and janmiuts, or the equivalent thereof, forv fastening the said sheathing or covering in position.

Eighth, in hollow auxiliary spokes, inelosiug a porv t'on of the 'main spokes.

Ninth, in spoke-clamping hub-plates, screwftappcd, and screwing directly upon an external thread ot' the axle-box, for the purpose of clamping a set of spokes between itself and a fellow plate, lwhich is not screwtapped, but is fitted loosely on the aille-box,` so as to hear, either directly or indirectly, against another pair of such plates, which, also, are not screw-tapped, but fittedk to abut against a shoulder of the axle-box.

Tentlu'in a peculiar formation of the inner faces of the clamping-plates and ofthe inner ends ofthe spokes, whereby the spokes are forced home outwardly, and at the same time held in position.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and usc my invention, I will proceed to describe one practical mode of making it.

lo make the rim or felloc A, I take steel wire, of, say

about No. 10, wire-gauge, and bend it intoacircle, car- A vrying it around helically two or more times, or, if pre-y ferred,1-I make a nest of wire circles or rings, welding the ends'of each together, and placing these rings side `by sideone another, thefsame as when wound helically.

f-lienest of wires a u (t thus formed is bound together laterally, by being snugly wrapped with fine wires b, say ot' about' No. 16, wire-gauge; this wire being carried around helically, and made to bind the nest of larger wires' firmly., at all points, except at proper intervals where binding-loops c c are formed for receiving the out-er portions of the spokes and the' wiresv c' c', between which said outer curved portions of the spokes lie, and b v which they are kept from lateral movement. r

I may, in some' cases, nseonly one bar of steel, a., and wrap it with wire, l). however, prefer the liest of w ircs wrapped. The spokes B are made of steel wire, bent so as to form nearly a rcght angle at the point where they ad'- join the rim, as shown in fig. 9.

The radial part of the spoke has a, V-shaped notch,

d, formed iu its circumference,A so as vto-.tita similar rib, n, on the inner face ofen-ch ot' the hub-plates H I, and the inner end or terminus of said part'fof the' spoke'is beveled, as at f, so as to match a beveled sllioulder, o. or abutment, also formed on the said hubp ate.

The circular portion of the spoke is beveled or chamfefred o, as at g, so as to wedge under the angle of a felloed spoke, where the parts ofthe wheel are'put toget-her. m i

[The wires c' c', which form the channel or groove on the inner circumference of the felloe er rim, are nearly in the form of a triangle, but the outer side is curved, as shown. These wires are bentinto the form of 'a ring, but their meeting ends are not united, and are inserted through the loops ofthe rim or felloe, o1" I may, in some instances, dispense with these wires, but prefer to use them as shown.

Ihe tire Dis formed of a fiat bar of steel, which is giooved or channeled on its inner side'in the manner shown in the drawing, fig. 8. The channel or groove is slightly concave, so that, when the tire is shrunk upon the rim, a bearing contact shall only be maintained at the edges or corners of said rim, and aspace, g1, (see g. 8,) shall exist between the tire and the rim between these corners.

By concavingthe tire, a side, as well as a peripherical hold upon the rim, and at the same time great strength in the tire to resist vertical pressure, are secured.

The sheathing E is, vin the transverse section, in the form of .au arch, corresponding to the inner circumference of the rim, and attachmentsy thereto, and is` madeI 'of sheet metal, and in segments of a little greater length than the longest distance between every Apair of spokes,

A Midway between the ends of each of the segments a'liole is cut through t-he sheathing corresponding to the size of a spoke, and at each end of the segmental pieces an op'cn oblong slot, 1', is cut. All of these segments, except the last, are applied after the curved' outer ends of the spokes are inserted in' their channel, and through the loops, by slipping them over every alternate mdial part of the spokes before the clampingplates of the hub are brought into position.

In order to have vthe segmental pieces overlap one another, it is necessary to make the sheathing segments alittle longer than segments ofthe rim.

The last sheathingsegments may be applied by dividing it into twol parts, longitudinally, or in an y other convenient practical manner.

To hold the sheathing in place, I employ auxiliary tubular Spokes j j, applied around the main spokes, and betweenthe hub and sheathing, as shown in fig.

4. These 'are slipped over the radial parts of the is constructed with an abutting shoulder mf.

The inner faces'ot` two of these plates, H I, are formed with a V-shaped rib, u, a. beveled shoulder, o, and a rib, p, with semicireular recesses pp in it, while the other two plates are formed with ribs q q' and semicircular recesses fr fr in it, as represented in figs. 3, 10, and 11.

The shoulders between the recesses r' 'r' serve to aid the-shoulders between the recesses r r in preventing the spokes from shifting laterally in the hub, while the rib n prevents the spokes from slipping in or out after they have been forced home. The bevel o, acting on the beveled end f of [the spokes, causes` the forcing home ot' the same when the hub-plates are screwed up.

The three plates G E I are loose on the box M, while the' other plate E is screw-tapped, as at t, and screws u-pon a thread, s, formed on the outer end ot' the box.

It is apparent that, if the ends of the spokes are placed in between the plates, and the screw-tapped plate screwed home, the whole set of plates and spokes will be bound rmly together.

K is a cap, screwing on the end of the screw-tapped hub-plate. This cap covers the end of the axle y and the nut z thereon'.

Thespokes are arranged in the hub and in t-ne rim so as to stand oblique to a vertical line, and the Obliquity of one set of spokes is the converse of that oi' the other set.

In some cases it may be desirable to use a long hub, andln order to avoid weight, I propose to employ a light' tube, 11:,betwecn eacb`pair ofhnb-plates. as shown in fig. 12.

In. putting the wheel together, it is deemed best vto have the loopsc come quite close to the angle or bend of the spokes, so as to sustain the strain at that point. p

An'y required number of loops may be. employed between each 'pair of spokes, and, to prevent slipping of the curvedpartsot' the spokes, one or more of the wires ot the loops may, if found necessary, be let down into a notch, as, formed in said parts of the spokes, as

shown in fig. 7.

. spokes in place, substantially as described.

4. The -wire or bars c' c', forming the groove for the outer portion of the spokes, iny combination with thc loops c, substantially as described.

5. The tire, constructed and applied so that the space g is left between the rim or t'elloe and the tire, substantially as described. i

6. The sheathing, made in segments, in combination with the continuousmetal rim or felloe, the sheath ing and-rim or felloe being constructed substantially as described.

7 The combination of the contindous felloe or rim Atsegmental sheathing E, and retaining nuts, or retaining and jam-nuts, or the equivalent of the said nu'ts, substantially as and for the purpose described.

8. The auxiliary tubular spokes T, i'u combination with main spokesr substantially ras described. o

9. The screw-tapped plate F t, in combination with the screw-tapped box M s and lsliding plates G H I', substantially as described.

l0. rlhe combination of the bevels f o with the rib n and notch d and notched rib q, in the construction of the buh-plates, substantially as described.

l IRA F. MUNSON.

Witnesses:

J. V. CAMPBELL, EDM` F. BROWN. 

